Tafseer - Concise Commentary of the Holy Quraan
By: Mufti Waseem Khan, Principal, Darul Uloom Trinidad and Tobago
Surah Baqarah Verses 6 - 7
In the previous verses of Surah Al Baqarah, mention was made of those people who believed in the Holy Quraan as the final book of revelation and they accepted the guidance which Allah gave to mankind. They are indeed the best group of human beings and hence, have been given the status of being Muttaqeen (God fearing, pious, righteous). Allah gave them the assurance that they will be successful in this world and the next, and that they were indeed rightly guided.
In the following verses of the Surah (that is, verses 6 and 7), mention is made of another group who was also offered the guidance from Allah, but they rejected it and adopted the path of rejection and disbelief. The verses state:
Surely those who disbelieve, it is equal to them whether you warn them, or do not warn them, they will not believe.
Here, the verse says that those people who refuse to believe in the signs of Allah, in the verses of the Holy Quraan and in the prophethood of Muhammad (S.A.), they are open disbelievers and deniers of the truth. Hence, admonitions, exhortations and good counsel to them are useless. They pay no heed to the warnings of Allah, and they give no consideration to the truth. As such, whether they are warned or not, they remain in the same state of disbelief. It is for this reason, Allah told the Prophet Muhammad (S.A.) ‘it is the same upon them, whether you warn them or you do not warn them, they would not believe’.
This verse is a comfort to the Prophet (S.A.), especially when his own people denied him. He was informed by Allah that (with respect to these people), he should have no hope that they will believe in Allah. They are arrogant and stubborn, and in all conditions they would not budge from their shirk. Hence, he should not feel sad and sorrowful within himself.
Verse 7 goes further to explain why they are not inclined to belief and good actions. Verse 7 states:
Allah has set a seal upon their hearts and upon their hearing and there is a covering over their eyes, and for them shall be a mighty punishment.
Here, Allah tells the Prophet (S.A.) (and by extension the entire mankind) that the reason these people have not turned to true belief, is on account of the fact that Allah Has sealed their hearts due to their own actions and attitude to the truth. Their hearts have been concealed and closed, and it is not open for the light of guidance to enter it. The ‘sealing of the heart’ occurs when sins are committed in abundance and there is no repentance. At this time, the light of the internal sight (or the sight of the heart) becomes obliterated and extinguished. In this state, there remains no understanding to recognize the truth nor any sense to identify falsehood. The result is that (for these people) there is no path to reach the truth of Imaan or belief, and there is no escape and rescue from kufr or disbelief.
Allah also states that He Has placed a seal on their ears and a covering over their eyes. This is the manner in which Allah Has withdrawn His favours from them. Though they may see everything, they are not able to see the guidance which has come with the Prophet (S.A.). They see, but do not recognize the truth in the signs of Allah, in the miracles of the Prophet (S.A.) and in the revealed verses of the Holy Quran. Hence, though they have eyes, they are yet blind to the truth. In a similar manner, they have ears with which they are able to hear everything. However, they have become deaf towards the truth of Islam. They pay no attention to what they hear, nor do they try to understand it. They have therefore, lost the capacity to accept the truth. While commenting on this verse the great commentator and exegete, Imam Abu Hayan writes, ‘Allah Has likened their hearts to a vessel which is sealed and closed-up (so that nothing enters it), because of their refusal to accept the truth. He Has likened their ears to that which has been blocked (so that nothing penetrates it), because of their turning away from the inviter to guidance. He Has also likened their eyes to that which has been veiled and covered (so that they does not reach to that which is beneficial), because they have prevented their sight from looking and recognizing the light of guidance. Although these organs were sound and their abilities were strong, yet, these prevented them from accepting that which was good, and also prevented them from listening to it and looking at it. These were all mentioned in a figurative manner. (Safwatut Tafaseer).
On account of the hard heartedness and arrogance of the above mentioned people, and due to their rejection of the true guidance, Allah says about them, ‘and for them will be a mighty punishment’. It means that they will face a severe punishment in the hereafter which will never end. This, they will meet due to their disbelief, evil deeds and denial of the signs of Allah.
